Specifically, but not exclusively, the invention can be used to form a roll of ice-cream by using a spatula to scrape a layer of a basic preparation for ice-cream previously spread and whipped on a cooling plane.
In particular, reference is made to a food preparation method for forming a food product into the form of a roll by a spatula used for scraping a layer of the product distributed on a work plane.
A method is already known for producing ice-cream in the form of a roll, in which a quantity of a food product is placed on a cooling plane and is then worked, generally with two spatulas, to whip and homogenise the product and then detach a roll of ice-cream by scraping.
The method of known type nevertheless has various limits and drawbacks and the technique used until today is improvable from various points of view.
Firstly, it would be desirable to be able to obtain the desired product, rolled on itself several times, i.e. with various winding revolutions, in a simple, guaranteed and repeated manner. The prior art does not ensure this result, as the formation of a roll wound correctly on itself depends on multiple factors that are not always easily controllable, such as, for example, the skill of the cook, the temperature of the cooling plane, the composition of the food product, the environment in which the culinary preparation occurs, etc.
Secondly, the prior art entails a time for preparing a single portion of product that is relatively long (up to two or three minutes), with the risk of forming long lines of waiting customers.
Further, the prior art provides for the preparation of the product being concluded when the cook observes visually that the desired whipping has been achieved on the cooling plane, with a great risk of human error, in particular with the danger of excessive freezing of the product.
Another drawback of the prior art is represented by the fact that generally more energy than necessary is consumed to maintain the cooling plane at a suitable temperature for forming the roll of ice-cream, without nevertheless ensuring the formation of a product that is rolled several times on itself.